‘WWE 24: Drew McIntyre – The Chosen One’ Review (WWE Network)

The WWE 24 documentaries have, at times, been really entertaining, but after watching this episode on the current WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, I believe none have been more revealing and open than this one. In just over an hour, this documentary manages to tell a great big story of McIntyre’s career in and out of WWE and it’s very good indeed.

There’s a lot to pick apart and sift through here. This documentary had a lot to say and not, really, that long to say it. McIntyre himself appears in interview-form throughout the episode, giving context, opinions or information about a variety of topics related to his career and his life since he started wrestling back in 2001 at the age of 15. Those early days are spoken about, as Drew himself, friends like NXT UK’s Wolfgang, and his family, discuss his love of pro-wrestling as a child and his desire to become a wrestler himself. Saving money, he would travel from Ayr, Scotland, to the FWA academy down south, where he began his road to training as a pro-wrestler.

The episode talks about and shows his time on the British scene, which back then was not what it is now (or was prior to COVID-19), and his time in companies like BCW and IWW (Irish Whip Wrestling) where he would meet and begin to work with Sheamus, who remains a close friend of Drew’s to this day. After this we jump into Drew’s signing to the WWE, his short time in FCW, and his debut on TV as Mr. McMahons so-called “Chosen One”. Drew talks candidly about how he found everything very easy back then, and things seemed to just happen for him without much of a struggle, from making his way through the UK indies to America, and becoming a main-roster WWE player with the Intercontinental Title around his waist. He says that this was a problem and led to him becoming complacent, eventually.

The documentary goes into detail on how Drew didn’t put the work in as his first WWE run progressed, and how he became disenfranchised towards the end of that run, when he was working in the comedy-trio, Three Man Band, with Heath Slater and Jinder Mahal. During this time, Drew lost his mother whom he was very close to, and this is talked about by Drew himself and his family and friends. It’s difficult and sad viewing, and he tells of how this was the spark for him losing his path and becoming addicted to drinking as a way to shut-off and block out his pain. His wife, Kaitlyn, speaks about how hard it was to see Drew in such a state and that it was a difficult time for him, and for their relationship. It really is a very frank and sincere episode and doesn’t shy away from telling McIntyre’s whole story, warts and all.

With his life in something of a mess, and his release from WWE in June of 2014, Drew made the decision to use his release as a catalyst for change, and make a name for himself wherever he could. He would return to Scotland and work for ICW, he would work with other companies such as Progress, TNA, Evolve, PWG and a whole range of others, and, through support from his wife and family, he’d quit drinking. It was here, during this time, that McIntyre began to garner a buzz as one of the best things on the indies, making waves and grabbing attention from fans and promotions worldwide, including WWE. In early-2017, three years after his release from the company, Drew McIntyre signed a new deal to appear in NXT, and he made his on-screen return to the company in April at NXT TakeOver: Orlando. Things had changed. Drew had changed, and his career would begin a climb that would make his hard work and sacrifices worth it.

His run in NXT, though not perfect due to injury, was still memorable. McIntyre won the NXT Championship and re-introduced himself to the WWE fanbase with a new look and an updated ring-style. He would make his return to WWE RAW one year later in April of 2018. The episode speaks about his return, his run on RAW, and his climb up the card that would lead to McIntyre winning the Royal Rumble in 2020, and heading to WrestleMania 36 to face Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship. It is stirring and emotional to see how much this all means to McIntyre, and hearing his thoughts and reactions to this part of his career is very cool. He talks about the initial bitterness of having to work WrestleMania in front of no fans, and how he changed his mind once he realised how important the event would be to wrestling fans around the world who were in need of a distraction. Drew went on to win the WWE Title against Lesnar at WrestleMania, fell to his knees with title in hand, and reached out to the camera. It was a great moment for a guy who worked for almost twenty years to get to that point.

Now at the pinnacle of his profession, with the greatest Championship in the business across his shoulder, Drew McIntyre has shown that focus, passion and fighting against adversity are worth the time and the effort. This is a damn fine episode of WWE 24, perhaps the best that WWE have produced so far, and it’s a fantastic look into the career and the life of a guy who is, at his heart, a pro-wrestling fan who worked like hell to make it to the top of the card. The first ever British World Champion in the history of WWE.

WWE 24: Drew McIntyre – The Chosen One is available now on the WWE Network.